Layton Rabb has proven himself very quickly as Midwestern State’s quarterback.

That’s a weekly process for a player and a team of course because the next opponent is always working to humble one.

But Rabb also proved something else to me which is don’t ever trust the spring football game. In case you were lucky enough to miss that one, Rabb’s Maroon team fell 9-2 to the Gold team. Lots of reasons for that but it was ugly. Rabb was 9 of 19 with two interceptions.

That MSU offense has not been seen or heard of since April. But still as the fall started Rabb, a 6-5 junior, had anything but a stranglehold on the starting job. There were seven others on campus competing and proven winner Hagen Hutchinson was among them.

There was some thought with the way this offensive line plays and running backs Adrian Seales and Vincent Johnson behind them that if the “quarterback doesn’t lose us the game” then the Mustangs are OK.

Well he hasn't lost any games, but Rabb obviously wasn’t just shooting for OK. He’s been brilliant in taking MSU to a 4-0 start and 3-0 — the only unbeaten — in conference. The past two weeks he’s earned Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week.

Obviously he doesn’t have guys in his face a lot, which will hurt any QB’s efficiency and he’s the first to tell you it’s about getting the ball into the hands of his teammates. He’s accurately and smartly getting the ball to the right places.

His chemistry with offensive coordinator Adam Austin has been easy to spot. That duo has been largely on the same page, putting the Mustangs in the end zone with great regularity. For it to be this way four games in amazes even Austin.

“Layton is a very, very smart quarterback,” Austin said. “He sees the game really, really well. He’s able to come off the sideline and tell me what he sees. We can make adjustments and get it relayed to the O-line, the tight ends and receivers.

"When you have somebody who is able to have that confidence and communicate during the middle of the game it makes everybody play lights out and play fast.”

As for his comfort level with Rabb, Austin said, “after four games it’s higher than any I’ve ever had.”

The offense as a whole played at a very high level (539 offensive yards) in building a 47-21 lead over Commerce Saturday and in a fourth-quarter putaway against Western New Mexico. Austin believed it was there even if not all the fans had seen it on a Saturday night previously.

“I see it every day in practice,” Austin said.

For the season Rabb has hit 60 of 94 passes for 908 yards and seven touchdowns with only one interception. He’s rushed for 88 yards and two touchdowns but can do that when needed for sure as he did by gaining 67 yards on nine carries against Commerce.

“He’s calm and cool. He’s a little bit of a run threat which adds another dimension,” MSU head coach Bill Maskill said. “He obviously understands what we’re trying to do on offense. And coach Austin called one whale of a ballgame (Saturday).”

Maskill has loved the ability of the offense to take shots down the field and be multi-dimensional. He saw some gutsy calls by Austin and well-executed confident throws from his quarterback make all the difference in a huge win.

“Teams are having to defend the entire field,” Maskill said. “In the past we haven’t necessarily been that way.”

Rabb and the Mustangs had the game seemingly won in three quarters, leading 47-21, only to see Commerce score 21 in the fourth. So the offense needed one more “win” to put the game in the win column at 47-42.

“The only stat column we look at, at the end of the week, is the win-loss column,” Rabb said. “This is an all-around group effort. It was a blast. This is what you live for in college football, a top 10 matchup, and we had a great crowd.”

The offensive line, which was a well-deserved rep as being one of the best in the LSC and Division II, will continue to be a key for the Mustangs, who finally won the possession battle Saturday night.

But a quarterback who is exceeding all expectations is a big reason the Mustangs are undefeated and ranked No. 6 in the country, too. Not sure I’ve ever seen the spring and fall seem so far apart.